Shakespeare Festival first look

The Old Globe Theatre has released a video peek at "Richard III," the first production to open in this summer's Shakespeare Festival. (It begins previews in earnest this Thursday.)

And the first hint that this is not your standard, faithful-to-the-period take on the tale of the "hunchback king"? Probably the sight of lead actor Jay Whittaker in a bright-gold getup that looks part Vegas, part "Space Odyssey."

Director Lindsay Posner is giving this one a nominally modern setting that evokes the war-roiled republics of the Middle East. (After you check out the video, click over to the U-T preview of the 2012 festival.)